Retaliation

Jackson Bell City attorneys will wait until next month before responding to a lawsuit alleging that city managers retaliated against three female Glendale Police officers who won a $3.5-million sexual-harassment case against the city, officials said. The lawsuit, filed June 1 in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges that officers Kathryn Frieders, Renae Kerner and Jamie Franke were "subjected to repeated further acts of harassment, discrimination and retaliation" after the trial last year.

Tim Willert GLENDALE -- City streets were quiet over the weekend, the result of an increased presence by Glendale Police to halt any further retaliation for the murder of Raul Aguirre. But respect for the memory of the slain teenager may also have contributed to the absence of gang activity, police said. "Our belief is that played a part in calming things down," Glendale Police spokesman Sgt. Rick Young said Sunday. "I have to commend the youth who are really trying to bring peace and not disrespect his name on the day of the funeral, his birthday and Mother's Day."

Darleene Barrientos A former Glendale Police employee testified Tuesday she was harassed by two sergeants and was fired by the department when she complained. Sally Herring was the first woman to take the stand in the Glendale Police sexual harassment retrial, as the plaintiffs' attorneys seek to show a pattern of unwanted sexual advances and retaliation inside the department. Herring was first hired to work in the department's crime lab in 1979, and was fired in 2002.

Ben Godar A business that specializes in renting props and costumes to the movie industry sustained several thousand dollars worth of damage when three transients allegedly flooded it in an act of retaliation. When Armies of the World owner Laurene Miller came into the store Saturday morning, she found herself standing in about 4 inches of standing water. Someone apparently had pushed a hose -- kept behind the store -- underneath a door and turned the water on. Police later arrested 39-year-old Michael Leadingfighter of Glendale, 42-year-old Jeril Ann Perry of Glendale and 43-year-old Garnett Alvin Summers of Glendale on suspicion of flooding the store in retaliation for a previous incident.

Ben Godar A retired Glendale police sergeant has denied writing poor performance evaluations of an officer because she testified about him in a harassment complaint against another officer. The former sergeant's comments were part of testimony that continued Tuesday in a lawsuit filed against the city by three female officers. Glendale Police officers Jaimie Franke, Katie Frieders and Renae Kerner allege in the lawsuit that they and other women were the victims of various forms of sexual harassment and retaliation by male co-workers within the department.

Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) has authored a bill that would expand protections from workplace retaliation to legislative workers who blow the whistle on government fraud and abuse. Legislative staffers were exempted from previous measures barring retaliation against whistleblowers in the governor's office, according to Portantino. “This is another self-serving protection that the Legislature enacted that needs to be repealed,” he said in a statement.

Alecia Foster GLENDALE -- For the record: Two Armenians were not shot and killed in retaliation immediately following Raul Aguirre's death. And rival gang members have not scheduled a "Westside Story"-like rumble at a fixed time and location. These are only two of the rumors Glendale school and police officials have tried to stomp out since the beating and stabbing death of Hoover High School senior Aguirre. "Rumors are poison," said Hoover Co-Principal Kevin Welsh.

Several weeks ago, I wrote to the News-Press, wondering "how many Einsteins" it was going to take before Glendale landlords discover how easy it will be to "game" the proposed rent mediation plan. Apparently, it's going to take more than I originally thought, if today's news article is any indication. Glendale landlords have absolutely nothing to worry about with "rent mediation." As depicted in the News-Press, the way the city staff planned it out, any landlord can circumvent the system merely by levying a smaller than 10% rent increase.

To the City Council: Thank you for your unanimous vote to deny permission for development of the Oakmont View V project. It was clear from the meeting on Wednesday evening that the intent of the developer and his associates was to intimidate the Glendale City Council with threats of legal retaliation should the project be denied. We appreciate your courage in saying no to a project that would have destroyed not only a rare, precious riparian area, but would have also resulted in degradation of the quality of life that we so much enjoy in the Crescenta Valley.

Glendale has prevailed in federal court after a jury found the city's decision to lay off two former parks officials was due to budget pressures, not, as alleged in a lawsuit, because the pair had complained about their boss. Russell Hauck and Eric Grossman alleged in their lawsuit that their jobs were cut after they complained about Dave Ahern - former assistant director of the Community Services & Parks Department - using a city truck and workers to haul rocks to his home. Ahern and then parks director George Chapjian were also listed as defendants in the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court.

To summarize the economics behind "G.I. Joe: Retaliation": the 2009 "G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra" made enough moolah ($150 million domestic, $150 million elsewhere) to justify - nay, demand - a sequel. As for the aesthetics of the film, "G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra" made enough moolah to justify - nay, demand - a sequel. Really. There are very few moments here where the filmmakers seem to have thought about anything else. You expect your basic action blockbuster to follow a rigid, demographically driven template, but with surprising frequency, the pieces superimposed upon that template include funny dialogue, distinctive characters, ingenious action concepts, or all three.

No doubt Mike Antonovich has done good things for northeast Los Angeles County during his career as supervisor of the 5th District. However, his latest move as the new chairman of the MTA Board of Directors has left many in his district, and around the county, wondering if he really has their best interests at heart. Within one week of taking command of the MTA Board of Directors, Antonovich summarily dismissed MTA board member and Glendale City Councilman Ara Najarian from his long-held position on the Metrolink Board of Directors.

A former Glendale police officer will receive a $450,000 settlement from the city after claiming in a lawsuit that he faced retaliation for raising concerns over officials allegedly auctioning rides in the department's helicopter to charity groups. Officer David Gillispie's lawsuit was dismissed this week in Los Angeles County Superior Court after both parties agreed to the deal, which also requires the city to destroy and seal flight training logs, complaint information, internal memos, two performance evaluations and information regarding his transfer to other duties.

So many victims, so many lies, so much still hidden, so much of your money wasted, so much you need to know to finally be free of the sins of the past. If you think you can escape the consequences of allowing your cops and your city officials to conceal the truth from you about all that has happened for so long inside the Burbank Police Department - as if your ignorance is some kind of shield - you are kidding yourselves. Rampant racism and sexism and nepotism - this has been going on too long.

Assemblyman Anthony Portantino (D-La Cañada Flintridge) has authored a bill that would expand protections from workplace retaliation to legislative workers who blow the whistle on government fraud and abuse. Legislative staffers were exempted from previous measures barring retaliation against whistleblowers in the governor's office, according to Portantino. “This is another self-serving protection that the Legislature enacted that needs to be repealed,” he said in a statement.

DOWNTOWN — Police are asking for the public's help in identifying the suspects who robbed a downtown jewelry store in broad daylight Monday. Police have detained a man and two women in connection with the robbery, which occurred about 1 p.m. at Glendale's Jewelry Mart in the 200 block of North Brand Boulevard. Immediately after the robbery, the trio led police on a chase from Glendale to South Los Angeles, where they were eventually detained, police said. Surveillance video of the incident released by Glendale police on Tuesday showed at least six people using axes and hammers to bust jewelry cases open while others scooped merchandise into open bags.

CITY HALL — A five-month investigation culminated in a 33-count criminal complaint filed Thursday in Glendale Superior Court by the city attorney accusing the owners of a Montrose apartment complex of retaliatory actions against tenants and failure to pay relocation fees. The complaint stems from several complaints by tenants of 2121 Valderas Drive, a 104-unit building undergoing a $2 million renovation at the hands of its Beverly-Hills-based owner Starpoint Properties, LLC. Starpoint, which deals exclusively in repositioning residential real estate assets, purchased the property in March for $17 million and immediately began construction to upgrade the units.

Jackson Bell City attorneys will wait until next month before responding to a lawsuit alleging that city managers retaliated against three female Glendale Police officers who won a $3.5-million sexual-harassment case against the city, officials said. The lawsuit, filed June 1 in Los Angeles Superior Court, alleges that officers Kathryn Frieders, Renae Kerner and Jamie Franke were "subjected to repeated further acts of harassment, discrimination and retaliation" after the trial last year.